The simplest — yet most effective — change that boosted my productivity
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David Allen's Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity is widely regarded as the foundational text that ignited the "productivity porn" phenomenon over 20 years ago. While I highly recommend reading it cover to cover, in this brief article, I want to introduce you to what has been its most transformative takeaway for me: the inbox.
Why Do We Need It?
In his bestseller — which meticulously details the GTD (Getting Things Done) methodology he first developed in the 1980s corporate world and later adapted for daily life — Allen begins with a crucial premise: our brains are surprisingly inefficient at remembering things.
Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them. — David Allen
Keeping ideas and tasks solely in our heads is detrimental for at least three key reasons:
- We subconsciously and constantly remind ourselves of them (often at the most inconvenient times), leading to feelings of overwhelm (this is the "stress" the book's title refers to).
- This continuous mental nagging leaves little room for what our brains truly excel at: solving complex problems and generating innovative ideas.
- Our short-term memory has a limited capacity, meaning some valuable ideas or crucial tasks will inevitably slip through the cracks.
In the newest edition of his book, Allen has further bolstered this assumption by including an entire section that leverages principles from cognitive science.
What Is It?
Allen's powerful suggestion is to externalize all these tasks and ideas to an external location (some refer to this as a "second brain"), thereby freeing our minds to focus on what truly matters (to us, not others — but that's a topic for another time):
The more it is on your mind, the more it's not happening, the more you are inappropriately engaged with it. — David Allen
To be truly effective, an inbox must possess these three essential characteristics:
- Effortless Access: If there's too much friction, we'll quickly abandon it.
- Easy Discoverability: Losing our best ideas is the last thing we want.
- Intuitive Use: A steep learning curve will inevitably send us back to relying solely on our brains.
Aim to have only a few inboxes, ideally one for digital information and another for physical documents.
A Few Examples
Some excellent inbox options include:
- Your smartphone's reminder app
- A simple text file on your desktop
- A compact notepad
Conversely, these are generally not ideal as inboxes (especially when starting out):
- Overly complicated software
- A bulky and heavy journal
- A random, easily misplaced piece of paper
Next Steps
For Paperless Enthusiasts
Locate the reminder app on your phone or install a new one (I highly recommend Todoist or Microsoft To-Do). To minimize friction, place it prominently on your home screen.
For Paper Lovers
Grab a small notepad (Field Notes offers some of the best for this purpose) and keep it in your pocket or bag when you're on the go. At the office, place it on your desk — already open — before you begin your day.
Embracing a daily inbox system has been the single most significant boost to my personal productivity. I understand it might seem unnecessary — perhaps even cumbersome — at first. But I urge you to give it a genuine try: stick with it for just a week or two, and I promise, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it.
What's your go-to inbox system? Share your insights in the comments below and let's spark a valuable discussion!